Am I responsible for my husband's school loan debt accrued since we were married?
Question Details:
Am I responsible for any school loan debt that my husband accrued since our marriage? Whether it be his death or him being delinquent on payments, I want to know if my income and assets are safe. The house is in my name only, we have one, small-balance bank account sharing our names, and no jointly named credit cards.
Hello and Thanks for the interesting email legal question. You can tune into wjr am 760 the great voice of the great lakes every Sunday from 2:00pm to 3:00pm eastern time to listen when I answer caller's similiar questions on the lawshow. You can also visit my website www.thelawshow.com or www.daileylawyers.com for more informative legal issue podcasts than you will find anywhere else on the internet.
As for your question. You will not be liable to anyone for the repayment of the student loans other than perhaps your husband and only in the event of a divorce in which you are bound by a divorce judgment requiring your participation in the debt. As to third parties such as banks and government guarantors of the student loans you will have no responsibility unless you cosigned or otherwise agreed to be responsible for those debts.
If you are worried about collection actions then you want to make sure that you do not allow any judgments name you as responsible unless you are in fact responsible and you do not want to have your husbands name on any accounts or assets. To have your husbands name on any accounts, merely sharing names allows all creditors to seize those assets even though you own them as well. Good luck and if you need addtional advice call me, Brian Dailey, 866 665 2993 or visit the www.thelawshow.com or www.daileylawyers.com
Unless you co-signed for the loan, you are not responsible for your husbands student loan debt. If the lender gets a judgment against your husband, a joint bank account could be levied upon to satisfy the debt. You should keep your earnings in a separate account to protect them.
A home that is only in your name would not be subject to claims against your husband. You should make certain that all of your assets are kept separate from his.
You need to speak to a lawyer to find out if MI is a community property state. However, with student loans, the lender is not able to go after assets of the spouse generally. Nevertheless, if you file taxes jointly there may be a way for the Government to levy on money that is owed. If the house is in your name only then that asset is safe. You also want to keep your money in a separate bank account. Take the money out of a joint account as that money is subject to being taken by a bank levy execution. You need to keep all your money and property in your name only. If you file taxes, you should speak to your accountant about how you want to file if you are getting money back.
